Circle Time Confidence in Preschool

One of the most vital events that takes place in preschool daily is circle time. The fundamentals of circle time include discussions about the weather, the days of the week and the months of the year. One thing that I have noticed over time is that some students lack confidence in this area.

In my class we begin the year learning and saying these concepts together. During this time it is easy for a student who is not confident to blend in. Once November begins, I will start to choose students to lead elements of circle time. This is imperative to the child’s overall growth but it may cause slight aniexty in a child who is less confident. A child who lacks confidence may begin to display signs such as: a spike in unfavorable behaviors as a way to avoid the spotlight, complete shut down or school avoidance. These are all elements that we do not want our preschooler to develop into long term habits.

One way to boost your child’s confidence is by buying him or her their own personal calendar. I suggest bying one that displays their favorite interest,such as: Cars, Frozen or Ballerinas. My daughter has a Doc McStuffins calendar that we hang above her bed. Each morning as a part of her chores she takes a crayon and puts an X on the day. By doing this action she is aware of the day of the week, the number of the day and the month of the year. I review these things with her as a part of our morning conversation before school. She is also putting together cognitively that numbers have an order and is being exposed to numbers up to 31, which is right on target for kindergarten. We also put special events on her calendar and let her count the days to the event. This is very similar to the use of an advent calendar during Christmas. I hope that this will help to foster more confidence in your son or daughter.